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If someone is threatening to share intimate images of you unless you pay or send more, do not pay, stop responding, and save everything before you block the account. Then report it: to the FBI, to the platform where the contact happened, and, if the images show someone under 18, to the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC). Sextortion is a crime under federal and Michigan law, and victims may also have civil claims, including a federal right to sue if intimate images are actually disclosed.
This guide walks through the immediate steps recommended by the FBI and NCMEC, the tools available to get images removed, the laws that apply, and when it makes sense to involve a lawyer. The person making the threats is responsible for this situation, not you.
Sextortion is a form of online blackmail. The perpetrator obtains, or claims to have, sexually explicit images or videos of the victim and threatens to send them to family, friends, classmates, or employers, or to post them publicly, unless the victim pays money, sends additional images, or does something else the perpetrator demands.
The contact often starts on social media, dating apps, gaming platforms, or messaging apps. Some perpetrators pose as a romantic interest and pressure the target into sharing images. Others never had any images at all and rely on fear alone. Some use digitally altered or AI-generated images. Teens are frequently targeted: NCMEC reports that its CyberTipline received more than 186,800 reports of online enticement, a category that includes sextortion, in 2023.
The FBI and NCMEC give consistent guidance to people being targeted. In practical terms:
Reporting creates a record, helps investigators connect cases, and can lead to accounts being shut down. Victims can report to the FBI online at tips.fbi.gov, by calling 1-800-CALL-FBI, or through the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center at ic3.gov. Keep the usernames, email addresses, platform names, and payment details you preserved, since those are the details investigators need.
If the victim is a minor, report to NCMEC’s CyberTipline as well. Local police can also take a report, which may be important if the perpetrator is someone you know.
Two free hashing tools can help stop images from spreading on participating platforms, without requiring you to upload the images themselves. Each tool creates a digital fingerprint, called a hash, on your own device, and only that fingerprint is shared with participating companies so they can detect and remove matching content.
These tools only work on platforms that participate, so you should still report content directly to any website or app where it appears.
The federal TAKE IT DOWN Act was signed into law on May 19, 2025. It made it a federal crime to knowingly publish nonconsensual intimate images, including AI-generated “digital forgeries,” of an identifiable person through an online service. Publishing such images of an adult carries up to two years in prison, and publishing images of a minor carries up to three years.
Importantly for sextortion victims, the Act also criminalizes intentionally threatening to publish these images for the purpose of intimidation, coercion, extortion, or causing mental distress. The penalties for threats involving authentic images match the penalties for publication.
The Act also requires covered platforms, including social media and other sites that host user-generated content, to have a notice-and-removal process. After receiving a valid request from the victim, a platform must remove the image within 48 hours and make reasonable efforts to remove known identical copies. Platforms had until May 19, 2026 to put that process in place, and the Federal Trade Commission enforces compliance. We covered the law in more detail in our overview of the TAKE IT DOWN Act and in our earlier analysis of state revenge porn laws and the bill.
Federal law makes it a crime to send an interstate or foreign communication containing a threat to injure someone’s property or reputation with intent to extort money or any other thing of value. A message threatening to expose intimate images unless the victim pays fits this description. The maximum penalty is two years in prison, a fine, or both.
The federal stalking statute covers a course of conduct carried out through the mail, an interactive computer service, or an electronic communication service with intent to harass, intimidate, or injure another person, where the conduct places the victim in reasonable fear of death or serious bodily injury or causes, or would reasonably be expected to cause, substantial emotional distress. Repeated sextortion threats across apps and accounts can fall within it.
If intimate images are actually disclosed without consent, federal law gives the depicted person a right to sue in federal court. The plaintiff may recover actual damages or liquidated damages of $150,000, plus attorney fees and costs, and the court may grant injunctions and allow the plaintiff to proceed under a pseudonym. Consenting to the creation of an image, or sharing it with one person, is not consent to further distribution. A lawyer who handles nonconsensual image cases can evaluate whether this claim fits your facts.
Michigan prosecutors have several tools, depending on the facts:
Cases involving minors can also be prosecuted under state and federal child exploitation laws, which carry far heavier penalties.
Criminal charges depend on law enforcement locating and prosecuting the perpetrator. A civil case is something the victim controls. Depending on the facts, claims may include the federal § 6851 action, invasion of privacy, intentional infliction of emotional distress, and requests for injunctions ordering the perpetrator to stop and to destroy the images.
Many perpetrators hide behind fake profiles. When the perpetrator’s identity is unknown, a lawyer can file suit against an unnamed “John Doe” defendant and ask the court for permission to serve subpoenas on platforms, email providers, and payment services for account and log-in records. The same process is used to identify anonymous online defamers. Some sextortion schemes are run from outside the United States, which can limit what a civil lawsuit can accomplish, so a realistic early assessment matters.
Sextortion often comes alongside other online abuse: fake accounts impersonating the victim, posts sent to the victim’s contacts, and false statements about the victim. An attorney can help coordinate platform reports and preservation letters, work alongside law enforcement, pursue civil claims, and address defamatory posts that accompany the harassment. For a broader look at how we help with online privacy matters, see our privacy law practice.
There is no way to know in advance. Some perpetrators have no images at all, while others do share content. What the FBI and NCMEC make clear is that paying or sending more images rarely stops the blackmail. The more protective steps are to stop responding, preserve evidence, report to the FBI and the platform, and use Take It Down or StopNCII to help block images from spreading.
Some do move on once a target stops responding, but ignoring the messages is not enough on its own. Before blocking the account, save screenshots of the profile, usernames, and messages, then report the account to the platform and the FBI. Reporting creates a record that can help law enforcement identify the perpetrator and gives you evidence if you later pursue a civil claim.
Stop all communication, do not pay, and preserve the evidence. Report the account through the platform’s safety tools and to the FBI at tips.fbi.gov or ic3.gov. If the images were taken when you were under 18, use NCMEC’s Take It Down service; adults can use StopNCII.org. A lawyer can also pursue subpoenas to identify an anonymous perpetrator and seek court orders.
Yes, in many cases. The TAKE IT DOWN Act, signed in May 2025, criminalizes threats to publish nonconsensual intimate images for purposes such as extortion or intimidation. Federal law at 18 U.S.C. § 875(d) also prohibits interstate threats to injure someone’s reputation with intent to extort money or anything of value, and repeated online threats can violate the federal cyberstalking statute.
Yes. Under 15 U.S.C. § 6851, a person whose intimate images were disclosed without consent can sue in federal court for actual damages or $150,000 in liquidated damages, plus attorney fees. Courts can issue injunctions and allow the victim to proceed under a pseudonym. State law claims such as invasion of privacy may also be available, depending on the facts.
Sextortion is designed to make victims feel isolated and panicked. Acting quickly and calmly, by preserving evidence, reporting, and using the available removal tools, puts you in a far stronger position than giving in to the demands.
If you are being threatened with the release of intimate images, or images have already been posted, the internet and privacy attorneys at Revision Legal can help you evaluate your options, work with platforms and law enforcement, and pursue civil remedies. Contact us through the form on this page or call (855) 473-8474.
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